If I ever wrote a non fiction book on racism from the historical view of a white guy (me), this would be a “must have” chart in the book. Just not sure what to say. I know Grand Haven always seemed pretty white… but jeez… ONE African-American living in the entire town? This area is…
December 17th: Gold and Red
Yesterday evening our patio fountain was silver in the sunlight, tonight it was gold. And at the beach, the gold became red. Similar, but different. Small joys every day. I did learn one fun fact today about shipwrecks on the great Lakes. It is estimated that 6,000 ships have sunk, with 30,000 lives lost. These…
December 16th: Sunday night and all is well
Our fountain next to the patio sparkled in the late afternoon sun. Regular shots of sunlight have returned, after weeks of heavy overcast. Sunsets across the sky are in full bloom again. Dinner at a creative gastropub (The Paisley Pig… how did we not visit it before this?). The Grand Haven downtown Christmas lights. Every…
December 12th: Cold water high
I had a routine after every basketball practice and game in high school: I would dash to the showers. Our home locker room had six shower heads, all would quickly be spewing steamy hot water. Then, when almost finished, I spun the shower to cold water only. In northwest Iowa, in the winter, cold water…
December 11th: Just what was needed
Our patience was rewarded last night… finally a sunset. Water temperature near the shore is just barely above freezing. We should start getting some exciting ice formations soon. Ice balls? Pancake ice? Soon we shall see. Speaking of pancakes, my wife has been creating blueberry waffles and pancakes for breakfast. Nothing like fresh (frozen) Michigan…
December 10th: An afternoon at the beach
Sunlight. We were promised sunlight. Instead we got another cloudy day and cloudy sunset. But today… finally! We have glorious sunshine. Spent a nice afternoon at the beach, listening and watching the waves, again all cozy in a warm black car with a window down. Hoping the clouds stay at bay, and we get our…
December 7th: The Shawshank Redemption
Finally, I saw the movie. Seems like I am the only person on the planet not to have experienced it. Lots to think about, but the question at hand, posed to me by an old friend (who will now always be “Red” in my mind)… am I Andy Dufresne? I was fond of the analogy…
December 4th: The eerie quiet
Woke up to bright sunlight this morning. Finally! But, by the time we made our way to the water, clouds had almost entirely engulfed the sky. Driving past the rows and rows of empty waterfront condos, the desolate streets, an abandoned waterfront… visions of a Stephen King movie setting drifted thru my mind. A nice…
December 3rd: Grey or Gray… still no sun
The sun peeked out this morning, but it was only for a moment. A moment so fleeting it doesn’t count. Trying to remember the last time I saw the sun… I think it was Thanksgiving day. While prepared for lake effect snow, I had forgotten just how dreary lack of sunlight can be. Great big…
November 30th: Watching history today
The sun, the sun! We were promised the sun today. So far, the sun is still a no-show. But as we approached the Grand River over lunch, my wife squealed with delight, “A ship, a ship!”. The Wilfred Sykes was just leaving Grand Haven, heading out to Lake Michigan. We of course had to stop…